Melting ice causes chaos on the Danube, as experts warn heavy flooding could bring more misery to a country devastated by the cold-snap

Giant chunks of melting ice are breaking free on the River Danube in Serbia, damaging hundreds of boats, sweeping away barges and sinking one of Belgrade's trademark floating nightclubs.

The thick ice had closed large parts of Europe's busy waterway as the region faced a record-breaking cold snap, but it has been shifting since Sunday afternoon because of rising temperatures. There were no reports of injuries.

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Shiver me timbers: Shifting ice is causing chaos for hundreds of boat owners on the River Danube

Write off: The melting ice caused this boat to capsize as the river is freed by the thaw

Cracking up: A swan swims on the partially frozen river but experts fear floods could follow

Officials around the region were trying to determine whether melting snow and ice would cause heavy flooding, creating more misery in an area that is dealing with a death toll that has risen to more than 600 and trapped thousands in remote mountain villages behind massive snow banks.